Spectroscopy Octaves of Perception - Gurdjieffs Enneagram

First I want to quote a itt e of !a ter "usse to set t#e scene$ %&#e 'nown octaves w#ic# ie in t#e range of perception are five and one #a f$ &#ese (egin wit# t#e t#ird) or #ydrogen octave) and end wit# t#e uranium group w#ic# are isotopes of actinium and tomium in t#e ast octave$ &#e invisi( e octaves of fine y divided matter of space are t#ree and one #a f in num(er$ &#ese octaves are (eyond our range of perception) (ut t#ey are not (eyond our 'nowing$ !a ter "usse

Spectrum *na ysis

Spectroscopy is t#e study of t#e interaction (etween matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visi( e ig#t dispersed according to its wave engt#, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative energy as a function of its wavelength or frequency. Spectroscopic data is often represented by a spectrum, a plot of the response of interest as a function of wavelength or frequency. Spectroscopes a ow us to ana yse and recognise eac# e ement w#en in its incandescent stage$ %+y means of t#e spectroscope) man #as (een a( e to divide ig#t rays t#roug# its prisms into t#e component parts w#ic# ma'e up t#e ife #istory of eac# stage of its two way cyc e$ Eac# e ement te s t#e story of its entire previous %incarnations in ot#er octaves) since its (eginning$ *ny ine in one octave is repeated in t#e ne,t (ut s#ifter in position (ecause of t#e c#anging pressures of eac# succeeding octave$ &#e spectrum of #ydrogen is preponderant y red$ * (rig#t red ine indicates its present octave$ Ot#er red ines te its past #istory in ower octaves$ &#e simp e #istory of #ydrogen) as compared to t#e comp e, spectrum of iron) is i'e t#e #istory of an o(scure yout# as compared to t#at of -apo eon$ In t#e spectrum ana ysis of iron) t#e ines w#ic# (e ong to iron and t#ose w#ic# te its recent and remote #istory can (e seen at a g ance$ &#ese ines a so indicate t#e re ative a(i ity of t#e iron atom to c#arge or disc#arge$ &#e visi( e and invisi( e spectrum is divided into severa t#ousand ines$ Eac# ine is different in its s#ade of co our and in its p ane$ Eac# ine proves t#at t#is universe of varying motion is a universe of varying pressures$ !a ter "usse &#e Secret of .ig#t$

/omments 0 /onc usions

1isi( e Spectrum 2 3$3 Octaves or 3$3 , 45 2 66 notes Invisi( e Spectrum 2 7$3 Octaves or 7$3 , 45 2 85 notes 3$3 9 7$3 2 : octaves 2 4;< notes "atios 3$3 0 : 2 44 0 4< 2 ;$6 44444 " 7$3 0 : 2 = 0 4< 2 ;$7 <<<<< " >ivision 3$3 0 7$3 2 44 0 = 2 4$3=485< " E ectricity 7$3 0 3$3 2 = 0 44 2 ;$676767 " ?agnetism *#@ Aes$ !e $ &#at is rat#er interesting wou dnt you sayB &#is is very important indeed@ E ectricity is s#own to (e t#e inverse or reciproca of ?agnetism$ CIs t#is connected to quantum mec#anics, the concept of matter waves or de +rog ie

waves ref ects t#e wavepartic e dua ity of matter? The de +rog ie re ations s#ow t#at t#e wave engt# is inverse y proportiona to t#e momentum of a partic e and is a so ca ed de +rog ie wave engt#$ * so t#e frequency of matter waves) as deduced (y de +rog ie) is direct y proportiona to t#e partic eDs tota energy, i.e. the sum of a particle s Einetic energy and rest energy! &#e E ectric we can perceive t#roug# t#e E ectric senses of our E ectric (odies w#i e t#e ?agnetic we cannot direct y perceive) yet can 'now$ &#en I t#oug#t more a(out t#is particu ar sequence 3 = 4 8 5 < *nd t#en) as I visua ised it in my mind on t#e unit circ e) I instant y recognised it to (e Gurdjieffs Enneagram@

Gurdjieffs Enneagram
%*n aspect of GurdjieffDs teac#ings w#ic# #as come into prominence in recent decades is t#e enneagram geometric figure$ For many students of t#e Gurdjieff tradition) t#e enneagram remains a 'oan, challenging and never fully explicated. There have been many attempts to trace the origins of this version of the enneagram" some similarities to other figures have been found, but it seems that #urd$ieff was the first person to ma%e the enneagram figure publicly %nown and that only he %new its true source& ' (i%ipedia. !#en we oo' at 3$3 0 7$3) we get 4$ 3=485< " If we trace t#e num(ers on t#e unit circ e a(ove we can c ear y see t#e fit wit# t#is famous enneagram 3 = 4 8 5 < and (ac' to 3 again$ &racing t#e route around t#e circ e we get So .a "e Fa ?i Si 3=485< Symmetry in "ecurring >ecima 3=4 2 47 >igit Sum 2 8 ?od : 85< 2 48 >igit Sum 2 3 ?od : ::: >igit &ota 2 5= 2 : ?od : 4705= 2 ;$8<4 " or 80: ?od : 4805= 2 ;$34< " or 30: ?od : 47048 2 ;$: 5<3=48 " or 803 ?od : 48047 2 4$;=6:57 " or 308 ?od : In t#e enneagram we can a so see t#e 7 6 : triang e so fami iar in t#e rest of our wor' t#at represents t#e 7 6 of ?agnetism or Po arity and t#e : of t#e /entra *,is w#ic# is in'ed intrinsica y to t#e ;$ I t#in' it may (e fair to say t#at t#e e,p anation as to t#e true meaning of Gurdjieffs enneagram #as (een aid (are (y t#e a(ove ana ysis$
The Fourth Way enneagram is a figure published in 1947 inIn Search of the Miraculous by P.D. Ouspensky, and an integral part of the so'called Fourth Way esoteric syste associated !ith

"eorge "urd#ieff. The ter $enneagra or dra!n&.

) derives from two #ree% words, ennea %nine& and grammos%so ething !ritten

The enneagra is a nine'pointed figure usually inscribed !ithin a circle. Within the circle is a triangle connecting points 9( ) and *. The inscribed figure rese bling a !eb connects the other si+ points in a cyclic figure 1'4','-'.'7. This nu ber is deri/ed fro or corresponds to the recurring deci al .14,-.7 0 117. These si+ points together !ith the point nu bered 9 are said to represent the ain stages of any co plete process( and can be related to the notes of a usical octa/e( 9 being e2ui/alent to $Do$ and 1 to $3e$ etc. The points nu bered ) and * are said to represent $shock points$ !hich affect the !ay a process de/elops. The internal lines bet!een the points4 that is( the three point figure and the si+ point figure( are said to sho! certain non'ob/ious connections( although here /ery little elucidation is offered.

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Origins

Ouspensky clai ed in 5n 6earch of the 7iraculous that the enneagra !as part of the teachings originally presented by ".5. "urd#ieff in 3ussia during the First World War. "urd#ieff is 2uoted by Ouspensky as clai ing that this for of enneagra !as an ancient secret and !as no! being partly 819 re/ealed for the first ti e. :lthough no earlier publication of the Fourth Way /ersion of the enneagra can be cited( it has been proposed that it ay deri/e fro ( or be cognate to( the ;e!ish Tree of <ife %=abbalah& as used in 3enaissance >er eticis %!hich used an enneagra of three interlocking triangles( also called a 8,9 8,9 nonagra & or a nine'pointed figure used by the ?hristian edie/al philosopher 3a on <lull. 5dries 6hah,

a populariser of 6ufis , has claimed that the enneagram has a Sufi provenance and
8)9 :nother clai to a !ebsite.

that it has also been long %nown in coded form disguised as an octagram.
6ufi pro/enance is offered by the 6ufi @nneagra

3obin : is clai s an Orthodo+ ?hristian origin( clai ing that both "urdi#eff and Ouspensky de/eloped 849 their teaching !ith insights gained fro /isits to 7ount :thos. :nother proposal suggests the diagra is a ap of the chakras fro yogic schools. 8.9

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F:pplication to processes

:ccording to "urd#ieff as 2uoted by Ouspensky in In Search of the Miraculous the enneagra figure is a sy bol said to represent the $la! of se/en$ and the $la! of three$ %the t!o funda ental uni/ersal la!s in "urd#ieffAs syste & and( therefore according to this /ie!( the figure can be used to describe any natural !hole pheno enon( cos os( process in life or any other piece of kno!ledge. The figure is the central organiBing glyph of the Fourth WayAs /ie! of the aterial !orld !hich "urd#ieff is 2uoted by Ouspensky as relating to alche y.

@nneagra

representing the e/olution of food !ith $self re e bering$ at point *

The ost detailed e+a ple of ho! this is said to !ork gi/en in In Search of the Miraculous is an e+planation of ho! "urd#ieff belie/ed inputs to the hu an body %$Food$( $:ir$ and $5 pressions$( collecti/ely regarded as types of food& are processed into the so'called $higher substances$ necessary for higher consciousness to function. One proposition of "urd#ieffAs alche ical /ie! of atter( essential to follo! is that $e/erything is aterial$4 consciousness and spirit are to be regarded as aspects of atter( although ore refined or of a $higher /ibration$ than perceptible aspects. This proposition is an essential basis for "urd#ieffAs /ie! of the e/olution of food into $higher substances$4 briefly su ariBed belo! fro the account in In Search of the MiraculousC :s ordinary food %beginning as $Do$& is eaten and enters the body at point 9( it is said to be processed in the outh and sto ach as $3e$ at point 1 and then in the s all intestine as $7i$ at point ,. >ere food canAt e/ol/e on its o!n any further( and it needs an e+ternal $push$. This $push$ in the gi/en case is $:ir$( seen as another type of food !hich enters at point ) as a ne! $Do$( #oining the e/ol/ing food in the bloodstrea at point 4( $Fa$ for the octa/e of ordinary food and 3e for the :ir octa/e. :t this point !e lose touch !ith clear correspondences to scientific physiology but point . in/ol/es the substances or energies used in thought4 point * being !here $5 pressions$( regarded as a type of food( are said to enter the body. $5 pressions$ !ill ser/e as a shock if they are intensified by so e such eans as the e+ercise of $self're e bering$ taught by "urd#ieff( thus allo!ing the :ir and 5 pressions octa/es to proceed through point 7 to point -. Other!ise only the ordinary food octa/e proceeds to point -. $<a$ at point 7 represents e otional and other energies and at point -( the $6i$ at the end of the first $ordinary food$ octa/e represents the se+ual energies4 !hich are the $highest substance$ according to "urd#ieff !hich the body produces naturally !ithout conscious inter/ention. : desire to conser/e this $higher substances$ for esoteric use is said to be the original reason for religious celibacy. With the conscious inter/ention at point * of $self re e bering$ further and ore useful $higher substances$ are created( represented by the air octa/eAs 6ol at point - and the 5 pression octa/eAs 7i at point -. %Ouspensky akes so e further re arks on the nature of this 7i - and 6ol - in his book Fourth Way! + further conscious shoc%,

requiring )a special type of control over the emotions) at point , would enable a new )higher) or spiritual body to begin to grow, this is represented by #urd$ieff as the aim of his and other esoteric traditions.
5t !ill be seen that by this /ie! e otions depend on $higher substances$ than thought and se+ual feeling on $higher substances$ still. The creation of the uni/erse is also described in In Search of the Miraculous in ter s of an octa/e( the 3ay of ?reation and therefore i plicitly in ter s of an enneagra .

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FOther applications

Other applications of the enneagra to describing processes can be found in !ritings influenced by those 8*9 879 of "urd#ieff( notably in the !ritings of ;.". Dennett. -n his boo% Gurdjieff: Making a New World Dennett describes the !orkings of a co unity kitchen in ter s of the enneagra and offers so e 8-9 e+planation of the eaning of the internal lines4 and his book Enneagram Studies is de/oted to the 899 sub#ect( offering nine e+a ples of enneagra s in /arious applications.
^ Ouspensky( P.D. %1949&. In Search of the Miraculous. Ee! Fork and <ondonC >arcourt Drace( and 3outledge. pp. ,94. 56DE G'1.'*GG74*'G. 56DE is for 7ariner Dooks( ,GG1. HuoteC $The kno!ledge of the enneagra a /ery long ti e been preser/ed in secret and if it no! is( so to speak( inco plete and theoretical for of !hich nobody could ade a/ailable to all( it is only in an a an !ho ake any practical use !ithout instruction fro has for

kno!s.$